Office Name Plates and Door Signs in Dubai: Arabic, English and One-Off Replacements
Name plates and door signs printed on acrylic and metal at our studio in Al Quoz, Dubai: Arabic and English on the same plate, from one replacement to a whole floor.
Sun Studio Dubai prints office name plates and door signs on acrylic and metal, in Arabic and English, with no minimum order. That can mean one replacement plate for a new manager, or a whole floor run as one consistent batch with a different name on each plate. We are the printing step: the blanks come from you or your fabricator, or we can source them on request, quoted as their own line.
At a glance:
- Quantity: one replacement plate to a full building schedule.
- Languages: Arabic and English on the same plate.
- Materials: clear, frosted and opaque acrylic; aluminium and stainless steel.
- Names: a different name on each plate from one set-up.
- Sample: AED 105 or AED 150 depending on what it is, taken off the invoice if you go ahead.
- Fixing: stays with your signage company or contractor unless we have agreed otherwise.
A door plate is a small item with a long memory. It is fixed once, then cleaned every week with a cloth and a chemical, and years later someone will ask for one more that matches. This guide is for office managers, fit-out contractors and signage companies. It covers who does what, which material suits which plate, how printing compares with engraving and vinyl, bilingual layout, replacements, braille and what to send for a quote.
What we print and who does the rest
We print. Most of our signage work comes from signage companies and fit-out contractors who fabricate the panels, send them to Al Quoz for printing and install them on site. An office without a sign company can ask us what can be arranged.
| Step | Who normally does it | What we need from you |
|---|---|---|
| Blank plate | You or your fabricator; we can source acrylic sheet or aluminium on request | Sizes, material and finish |
| Cutting and routing | Your fabricator or our partners, before printing | The cutting file |
| Printing | Sun Studio, in Al Quoz | Artwork and the list of names |
| Assembly | Your fabricator or our partners | Holes, standoffs and polished edges |
| Fixing and permits | Your signage company or contractor, unless we have agreed otherwise | How the plate will be fixed |
Which material suits which plate
Choose by where the plate sits and how long the set has to last. The same artwork can run on any of them.
| Material | How it looks | Usually suits | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clear acrylic, reverse printed | The design sits behind the sheet, and the acrylic is a gloss layer over it | Reception and management offices | The artwork is mirrored and the white goes down last |
| Frosted acrylic | A soft face, printed on the front | Meeting rooms | Approve a sample on the actual sheet |
| Opaque acrylic | A solid white or coloured ground | Room plates and long schedules | Usually the simpler and cheaper route |
| Powder-coated or lacquered aluminium | A solid, even colour | Long schedules in a brand colour | The ink bonds to the coating, so its quality matters |
| Brushed or bare aluminium, stainless steel | The metal shows through the colour unless white goes down first | Corporate floors | Bare, anodised or unfamiliar metal gets a test piece first |
Legibility depends on the contrast between type and background far more than on size. On clear or brushed plates, that usually means white ink underneath. More detail is on our acrylic printing and metal printing pages, and in how reverse printing on acrylic works. For a desk plate given as a gift or award, crystal engraving and printing may suit better.
Printed, engraved or vinyl
| Method | Best at | Limit |
|---|---|---|
| Direct UV print | Full colour, brand marks at their own colour values, fine bilingual type | A new name means a new plate |
| Engraving or etching | A plain mark cut into the plate, in the colour of the material or an infill | Full-colour content is out of reach |
| Cut vinyl | Quick changes: the graphic can be stripped and a new one applied to the same plate | Weeding is punishing on fine Arabic script, and applied film is under constant stress in UAE heat |
We do not engrave or etch metal, so if a plain engraved plate is what the building calls for, a laser or etching shop is the right supplier. Vinyl can also be the sensible choice where tenancies change often.
Arabic and English on one plate
Set both languages from the start, not as an afterthought. Arabic has fine joins and diacritics, so supply it as outlined vector and it prints as drawn. It also tends to look smaller than Latin type at the same point size, so size the two by eye until they read as equals.
Test the layout with your longest name and job title in both languages before the schedule is final. Have someone who reads Arabic check the list, because names are printed exactly as supplied. Keep each language on the same side of every plate, so the floor reads as one set.
One replacement plate that matches the rest
There is no minimum order, so one plate is a normal job. Send a photograph and, if possible, one of the existing plates. Matching colour and finish across old and new is far more reliable with a physical reference than with a colour code alone.
If the set is likely to grow, keep three things on file with your supplier: the approved artwork, the material specification and the fixing detail. A door plate ordered in year three then matches the plate installed at handover, as our guide to specifying a building's signage explains. On a repeat order there is no sample fee, and where a fresh sample is needed we charge only what it actually costs.
A different name on every plate
There is no screen to make, so each plate can carry its own name and title from one set-up. Send the layout once and one list: room number, name and title, in English and Arabic, in final spelling. Send a few spare blanks too.
Run a full schedule as one batch, because that is how a building's signs come to match each other. Where names change often, a slider-ready blank lets you keep the holder on the door and replace only the printed insert. Staff badges follow different rules, covered in our guide to badge printing.
Door signs with braille
If a plate carries braille, treat it as a code deliverable rather than a design element. In Dubai the instrument is the Dubai Universal Design Code, and the US ADA does not apply. Mounting height, character size and dot geometry come from the code and are confirmed with your authority, so read what the code asks for before the schedule is final.
Raised lettering and braille are a separate build from a flat plate, covered on our braille and tactile signage page. We produced bilingual door, room and directional signs with raised braille for Dubai Municipality.
Indoors, outdoors and cleaning
Indoor plates are the simpler case, but they still see a cloth and a chemical every week, so tell us what your cleaners use. Outdoors it depends on the panel, the exposure and the cleaning. UAE sun and heat are demanding on any surface layer, so for exterior plates we print a test piece and assess it rather than make a blanket claim. How long UV printing lasts explains what affects it.
What drives the price and how long it takes
Name plates are quoted per job, not from a price list. The main drivers are the material and size, the number of plates, reverse printing or a white base, and any cutting or sourcing you ask us to arrange. There is no minimum order, and the price per piece falls as the quantity rises because setup is shared across the run. What drives a UV printing quote covers the same arithmetic on other products.
On an unfamiliar surface we normally print a sample on the actual plate first, and that sample is the reference for the run. It is charged at AED 105 or AED 150, depending on what it is, and the fee comes off the invoice if you go ahead. A sample is normally ready in one to three working days.
The run time comes with the quote and counts from artwork approval, assuming the blanks are with us. Dubai deliveries are typically made within one to two working days of the job being finished, and the other emirates within two to four.
What to send for a quote
- The schedule: how many plates, which rooms, and the names in final spelling.
- The size, material and finish, or one existing plate if you are matching a set.
- Vector artwork with all type outlined, at finished size, plus the cutting file if the plate is shaped.
- Which colours are critical, and whether the panel face should show through.
- Any holes, standoffs or polished edges, and how the plate will be fixed.
- Whether the plate is indoors or outdoors, and whether it needs braille.
- Your deadline, and where in the UAE the order is going.
Common questions
How much does an office name plate cost in Dubai?
Can you print one replacement name plate that matches the others?
Do you install office name plates and door signs?
Should a name plate be printed or engraved?
Can you print a different name on every plate?
Can a name plate go outdoors?
Do office door signs need braille, and can braille be printed?
Sun Studio Dubai has been printing in Al Quoz First since 2011 and serves all seven emirates. Send the schedule and one existing plate, or the artwork and the material you have in mind, by WhatsApp or phone on +971 4 346 7422, or by email to info@sunstudio.ae. We will tell you what that material will take and how to keep the set matched.